A Husband's Jealousy
by Linda4HIM59
Summary: Michaela's acting different, Sully's worried. He sees her with Hank and explodes in jealous anger. Does she have a good reason? How will she tame her angry mountain man? Written for May 2010 forum challenge.


**A HUSBAND'S JEALOUSY**

_By Linda Ellen (Linda4him59)_

_May 2010 Challenge piece_

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman (but those people aren't using them anyway!)_

_Challenge pics were – one pic of Sully staring intently, one pic of Hank looking down at Michaela, her head down._

_OOOOOO_

Sully sighed as he watched his wife at the other end of the breakfast table.

She'd been acting strange for the past week, snapping at him and the kids and complaining about everything - he even heard her be rude to a patient! He couldn't figure it out, but something wasn't right. They'd been so happy during these first five months of their marriage...and now this. She hadn't let him make love to her in over a week. He was starting to think she wasn't happy with _him_, and his heart constricted at the thought.

"I don't know what's wrong with me, Dorothy," she'd confided to her best friend the previous afternoon as he unintentionally overheard through an open window. "I just feel so unhappy, I cry at the drop of a hat, I'm edgy and irritable." Unfortunately he hadn't heard any more of the conversation because Robert E. had hailed him at that moment.

Sully had not thought it possible that his Michaela would be dissatisfied with their life together. _I thought everything was fine...great even,_ he thought to himself as he watched her picking at her food. He had tried to get her to talk about it, numerous times, but she'd resisted his every attempt.

It also hadn't helped his psyche that Preston had overheard one of their arguments and made it a point to tell Sully, in detail, about Michaela giving what he termed "special treatment" to the bartender earlier that week.

Sully didn't know how much more of this he could handle.

OOOOOOOOO

The next day, Michaela stepped out on the porch of the clinic to bid goodbye and heartfelt thanks to a colleague from Denver. She felt so foolish. How could she not have known? She chuckled to herself a little and couldn't wait until she saw Sully to tell him her news.

Stepping out in the street, she spied a child's doll lying in the dirt a few feet away and she bent down to pick it up. As she straightened, the street and buildings started to spin. Just at that moment, Hank glanced through the doors of the saloon and saw her swaying dizzily. Shoving two men aside and reaching her in two seconds, he managed to catch her before she hit the dirt. Michaela grabbed onto his shirt with both hands as he wrapped his arms around her, supporting her weight.

"Michaela? You ok?" the barkeep questioned, trying to peer into her face past the ridiculous little hat that blocked his view.

"Yes...I think so..." she replied weakly, feeling slightly nauseous and continuing to hold tight to his clothing, not realizing how that might appear to the casual observer.

At that moment, Sully, just coming out of the mercantile, turned his head and saw his wife in the arms of the saloonkeeper. Raging jealously rose up within him and he charged straight for them.

"_Take your hands off my wife, Hank_!" he bellowed when he was still halfway down the street.

Both Michaela and Hank turned their heads at his tone, watching as he quickly strode up to them. Rougher than he realized, Sully reached out and grabbed his wife's arm, tugging her out of the barkeep's 'embrace'. Thankfully she had just regained her balance.

"Sully! What are you _doing_?" Michaela reacted, surprised at his vehemence.

"Take it easy Sully. I was just-" the barkeep began, only to be cut off in mid sentence by the jealous mountain man.

"I _saw_ what you were doin'," he sneered, anger flashing in his eyes.

"Stop treatin' her rough like that!" Hank ordered.

That did it. Uncharacteristically angry and suspicious, Sully drew back his fist and punched his oft times adversary square in the mouth. Hank stumbled back, his hand automatically going to his split lip as his eyes widened in shock.

"Sully!" Michaela squealed at her husband, trying to pull him away as the two men assumed fighting positions.

"I've seen how you're always lookin' at her, but she's _mine_!" Sully barked, ignoring his wife's pleas.

"Well, maybe you don't _deserve_ her!" the saloon owner barked in return.

"Stop it - both of you!" Michaela tried again as Sully made a lunge at the taller man. Both of them hit the dirt wrestling and punching.

Michaela looked around wildly for help and spotted Robert E. heading their way, having heard the commotion. She ran a few steps toward him. "Robert E.! Help me stop them!"

The blacksmith rushed forward as Jake came running from the barbershop. They reached the men at the same time and each grabbed one, separating them roughly.

Angry and disheveled, they continued to trade insults and threats as Jake dragged Hank inside the saloon and Robert E. manhandled Sully into the clinic. Michaela thanked their friend profusely and quickly closed the door after him, turning to face her angry, sweaty, dusty, scraped and bruised husband.

They stood for a few moments staring at each other – Sully breathing heavily, his blue eyes dark with jealous anger.

Suddenly, Michaela bit her lip and chuckled softly at the absurdity of it all. Seeing his eyes flash even hotter, Michaela shook her head and moved forward, taking his arm and tugging him to the exam table.

"Sit up here," she requested softly. Still fuming, he nonetheless complied.

Retrieving a pan with water and a cloth, Michaela set about lovingly tending to the scrapes, bruises and dirt on her husband's face.

After a few minutes, she asked quietly, "Do you want to tell me what that was all about?"

Sully bristled. "What were you doin' huggin' Hank like that?"

Michaela paused in her ministrations and gazed into Sully's eyes. "I wasn't hugging him."

"Well it sure looked like that ta me!"

"He caught me and kept me from falling when I became dizzy," she explained gently, maintaining eye contact to allow him to see her veracity.

Sully digested this for a moment. "You were dizzy?" he asked softly, the anger beginning to evaporate.

"Mmm hmm," she responded softly, resuming her loving treatment.

"...How come?"

"Oh, possibly because of...my condition."

Sully's eyes blanched at this, missing the twinkle in hers. "Condition?" he croaked.

"Mmm hmm," she replied again, this time catching her bottom lip between her teeth. Suddenly Sully realized her eyes were sparkling.

"You mean-?"

"Yes, my husband," she nodded, unable to stop the grin that took up residence on her face. "I..._we're_ going to have a baby!"

"A baby?" Sully whispered, the last of the jealousy forgotten. "A _baby_?" he said louder. Finally letting out a whoop of joy he hopped down off the table and scooped her up in his arms, swinging her around as she giggled in pure delight. Setting her back down on the floor, he took her lips with his in a firm kiss.

Then remembering her delicate condition, he pulled back, gently cupping her face in his hands as he lovingly scanned her eyes. "Are ya alright?" he murmured softly.

Michaela smiled up into his beautiful, joy-filled eyes and nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Dr. Bernard examined me. I'm two months along," she answered lovingly. Chuckling self-effacingly, she added, "I can't believe I didn't know it myself."

"So, that's what's been wrong the past week?" he asked caringly, taking her hand and leading her over to the cot in the corner. Sitting her down, he knelt in front of her, kissing her fingers and gazing up at her adoringly.

"Yes. I'm sorry I've been so hard to live with," she murmured, becoming lost in his eyes as always.

"I...I was afraid...that you were gettin' tired of me or...somethin'," he admitted humbly.

"Is that why you thought I was hugging Hank?"

He lowered his eyes, feeling quite sheepish. "Yeah...I guess I...listened to gossip when I shouldn't have."

Meeting her eyes again, he added softly, "I just can't stand the thought of another man touchin' ya." As his eyes lovingly caressed her face, he realized it was infused with a warm glow. Belatedly he remembered he'd seen that same glow on Abby when she was first expecting.

"Oh Sully," Michaela murmured softly, "don't you know there's no room in my heart for any man but you? I'm so in love with you...I think about you night and day..." Gazing lovingly into his eyes she added, "I am yours, Byron Sully, heart, mind and body - don't you know that?"

He smiled dreamily. "Just like I've been _yours_ since the first time ya looked into my eyes," he murmured softly.

She smiled in sweet agreement, leaning forward and gently taking his lips with hers, their eyes drifting shut in sheer bliss. His arms encircled her and she reveled in the warm familiar comfort of her husband's embrace.

After a few minutes he pulled back a little and murmured, "So...when?"

"My best guess would be right around our anniversary."

He grinned at her, his dimples making his face even more handsome - if that were possible, and gently caressed her nose with his. "Best anniversary present there is, I'd say."

"I agree," she whispered.

Leaning back, a mischievous glint in her eyes, she pointed out, "Um...I'd say you owe an apology to a certain tall fellow with long blond curls."

He looked down in true embarrassment and nodded. "Yeah, you're right...I can't believe I lit into 'im like that," Sully chuckled at himself, grinning the adorable smile Michaela cherished.

"I hope he'll let me apologize and explain that it was just a bullheaded husband's jealousy."

"Indeed," she agreed.

They both chuckled before Sully sweetly took her lips with his again, effectively blocking from their minds all thoughts of apologies, anger, jealousy, or misunderstanding of any kind.

THE END


End file.
